“I’m a believer that units take on the personality of their commander, and I believe that’s certainly the case here,” said Brig. Gen. Clayton M. Hutmacher, ceremony host and commanding general of the United States Army Special Operations Aviation Command. “It’s a great personality that I see in the USASOC Flight Company, and Tom, my credit goes to you and (wife) Jennifer in the way that you’ve led the company over the last two and a half years.”

During his time in command, Travis saw the UFC make the transition from a detachment to a company and provide critical input needed for the UFC’s request for C27J Spartan aircraft to replace their current CASA-212s.

With the addition of C27Js, the UFC would be able to transport a larger number of personnel during training and airborne operations.

“Since being in command, UFC aircraft have jumped well over 60,000 static line jumpers and 10,000 free-fall jumpers,” said Travis. “Now consider we do it all 10 to 12 jumpers at a time, with the average from takeoff to the ‘go’ command is about four minutes.

“Simply put, nobody else in the military can do what we do,” he said.

“Chief Warrant Officer 5 Adams will face far different challenges than I did, and I firmly believe he will make the company better than when he found it,” said Travis.

“Tom has been an integral part of this unit and its mission for some time,” Adams said. “Any success we have coming up, whether it’s the (potential) movement to Pope Field or fielding the C27J, I owe that to the volume of hard work that you, the Soldiers, civilians and contractors have done prior to this moment.”

In closing, Adams assured everyone that he will not take his new role lightly.

“For everybody present, I commit that I will do everything to continue on with the excellence that Tom and the former commanders, Soldiers, civilians and contractors have done over the previous years.”